Days passed as Damien searched for where the river diverged. During this time, Edmond and the other generals used what was left of their troops to carve out a path for the great generals. They faced what seemed to be little resistance as they made their way through Beastopia.
Most of the demi-humans moved ahead of the army; those who refused and fought back were killed. The most challenging encounters they faced were with the bear demi-humans, who attacked them but retreated without a trace.
The four great generals were some of the best. They all hailed from prestigious noble families and boasted immense power. With them at their side, the mage soldiers were extremely confident they could take Beastopia without much challenge.
Damien, on the other hand, didn't share their confidence, and neither did Edmond. In truth, they knew little about demi-humans. The last time anyone even attempted to fight them was over a century ago, and it ended in a crushing defeat.
You'd think this would cause them to be a bit more cautious, but no, they were still careless. They kept underestimating their enemy. To them, the demi-humans were nothing but mongrels—wild beasts that had taken on a semi-human form and still had the intelligence of a wild animal.
After eight grueling days of searching, Damien finally found what he was looking for. The source of the river was atop a mountain close to the border. The river split at many different points, covering the whole of Beastoria.
Since all of the demi-humans relied on the river as their source of food, it was the perfect tool to spread a virus.
The virus Damien and Edmond created was truly a work of art. It was by far the most resilient virus ever created. Most viruses don't survive long in outdoor living conditions, especially in harsh environments like rivers.
The best course of action, and the one they chose, was to genetically alter an already existing waterborne virus. The perfect virus for this was the poliovirus, since it was highly contagious and spreads fast.
The poliovirus is an infectious disease that leads to paralysis and sometimes death. The genetically altered virus was called MNV-DT, which stands for Mana-Neurovirus: Devil's Tooth. He and Victor had conducted countless experiments on people who had died from the poliovirus to better understand how it worked.
MNV-DT was designed to specifically alter the body so that it rejects the mana gene. This was made possible by using the Devil's Tooth mushroom. And since Damien didn't possess any mana, he wasn't at risk of catching it.
Damien stood over the river and emptied the vial containing the virus into the water. Immediately, a group of fish began swarming around it and started eating. The fish would be safe since they didn't possess any mana; it was the humans who would eat those fish that would be at risk.
The virus would attach itself to a special enzyme in the fish, where it would begin to multiply. The fish would then release more virus through their feces. It was an endless cycle. It wouldn't take long for the virus to begin to spread.
The next course of action, now that his task was finished, was to head back to Edmond. It would be where he'd be safest. His arm was basically refusing to heal—a side effect of him suturing it with acid. It was discolored, with a blackish-blue color on the little stump that remained on his arm.
His left eye was closed up; it was most likely infected, as he was experiencing blurriness in his other eye. If he didn't head back to Victor in time, he might end up losing both eyes.
Damien reached into his shirt pocket and took out another vial, just staring at it. This vial also contained a virus—one that he created on his own, one that was supposed to grant him access to mana.
He hadn't been able to run the necessary tests on it to see if it would work. He'd done countless experiments using the Devil's Tooth mushroom, which was a core component in this virus. The fact that the mushroom could absorb mana intrigued him immensely. But still, he was 80% sure that it wouldn't work. Not only that, he was half convinced that it would kill him if he tried it.
Plus, there was one more missing component to this virus—the blood of a mage. In order to activate it, he needed to consume the blood of a mage after taking the virus. And even if the virus did work, it wouldn't be able to heal his injuries, so it made no sense to take that risk.
He stuffed the vial back into his pants pocket and began making his way back down the mountain. His first task would be to figure out where Edmond's troops were. When he left, they were heading straight into the center of Beastopia by circling north.
He would have to head north in hopes of finding them. Their forces must've dwindled down by now, given the bear demi-humans' attack plus the virus that would be making the rounds in a couple of days. Not even they would be spared. The only people with protection were Edmond and Victor.
If only demi-humans died from the virus, it would've been too suspicious. Their plan was to make Victor the one to figure out something was wrong with the river water after a couple of soldiers had died.
And if anyone else tried to investigate, they would come to the conclusion that it was simply a bad case of polio. It would boost Edmond's reputation immensely if he were the only one to come back alive in a war that was tragic enough to take the lives of great generals selected by the king himself.
It was a plan Edmond orchestrated all on his own, without Élise or Charles Vanderbilt's knowledge. He made sure they remained ignorant of the situation altogether.